Member countries of the World Health Organization (WHO) have finalized a draft global agreement aimed at improving how the world prepares for and responds to pandemics.
In a statement on Wednesday, the health agency observed that the agreement marks a historic step that will be submitted to the World Health Assembly in May for adoption.
The WHO pointed out that the agreement was developed under its auspices after more than three years of negotiations.
It emphasized that the draft outlines a framework for strengthening international collaboration, equity, and resilience in the face of future global health threats.
Remarking on the agreement, WHO Director-General, Tedros Ghebreyesus noted that in reaching consensus on the Pandemic Agreement,
not only did the nations of the world put in place a generational accord to make the world safer, but they have also demonstrated that in a divided world, nations can still work together to find common ground and a shared response to shared threats.
Negotiations on the draft global agreement began in December 2021 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when WHO member states agreed on the urgent need for a legally binding international instrument and established the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB).
